WUSA9 Shutdown Soapbox

The U.S. Capitol is shown as the U.S. Congress remains gridlocked over legislation to continue funding the federal government September 30, 2013 in Washington, DC(Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images)

HERNDON, Va. (WUSA9) -- About two dozen people came out to protest the shutdown outside the Herndon office of Congressman Frank Wolf.

"Congress is messing with my family and I'm not taking it lightly," said Danja Roberts, a Leesburg mother of two. She agreed to step up and give her opinion on the WUSA9 soapbox.

"If people think this isn't affecting regular people, they are sorely mistaken," she said. Her husband is a federal government worker, deemed essential and still working, but not receiving a paycheck.

"I'm just really worried, the mortgage is coming up, car payments. I just had to pay a big hunk of money for car taxes for Loudoun County, so there's not a lot of money left," said Roberts.

The protest is one of many across the county. Organized by Fairshare and Organizing for Action, they are targeting republicans including four in Virginia.

Clinical Psychologist Virginia Lindahl helped organize the protest. She's angry at Republicans who want to defund the Affordable Care Act. "Its incomprehensible to me," she said explaining that she waited nine years to be able to afford comprehensive health insurance.

Rep. Frank Wolf says he'll support a so-called "clean bill," but some protesters think he should do more and side with democrats.

Frank Wolf's spokesman says he's doing everything he can to get the government reopen and is sponsoring legislation that would give back pay to federals workers.